DANCES WITH FILMS 2015: THE LAST TREASURE HUNT

Oliver (Casey Nelson) and Lucy (Kate Murdoch) in The Last Treasure Hunt.

Clued to each other

By Miranda Inganni

Estranged siblings Lucy (Kate Murdoch) and Oliver (Casey Nelson) Sinclair are reunited by their father’s death. The siblings, raised with an annual treasure hunt orchestrated by their imaginative, if not distant, father, return to their childhood home to learn the fate of the house and the contents of the will. To their dismay, their dad has arranged for one last hunt, which they must solve together in order to inherit anything.

At turns energetic and then reluctant, Lucy and Ollie traipse through familiar landscape and near-forgotten memories, solving each of the clues as they go.

Directed by Patrick Biesemans and co-written by Murdoch and Nelson, The Last Treasure Hunt explores the dynamic between the whimsical, yet sullen Lucy and practical, older brother Ollie who considers himself the more adult of the two. While past familial drama continues to widen the divide between the once-close siblings any hope of a resolution (or sale of the house) can only occur if they work together – something neither one is very good at doing.

Despite some moments of weak writing, both Murdoch and Nelson (and the supporting cast) give fine performances. The muted colors of the scenery lend a gravitas to the film, which veers into near-precious territory in a couple of scenes. The actors do a great job making the characters believable, but it is unclear if Lucy really learns anything about responsibility and if Oliver really learns about forgiveness and letting go. One gets the sense that in the days following the final scene, the sibling rivalry between the two would rear its intrusive head, again.